Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday said ruling BJP members have filed over five lakh complaints against suspected foreigners as part of their “national responsibility” in the poll-bound state, hours after asserting to continue with his brand of “politics of polarisation” to “save” the Assamese people from the threat posed by illegal Bangladeshis.
Amid claims by Opposition parties about the ruling BJP’s “attempts” to influence the ongoing special revision (SR) of the electoral roll in its favour, Sarma said: “Everyone knows in Assam that Bangladeshi Miyas have entered the state. If no one receives notice under the SR, it will imply there are no (illegal) foreign nationals in the state. That is why BJP karyakartas (workers) filed complaints against those they suspect to be foreigners. The government or the Election Commission will examine the complaints.”
Sarma said that had there not been a single complaint against suspected foreigners and “tomorrow someone claims there are foreigners in Assam”, the natural question would be why there was no complaint under the SR if there are foreigners in Assam.
He added: “Filing complaints under the SR is a national responsibility, not only of the BJP, but also of the other parties and organisations. Unfortunately, no complaint was filed by other parties and organisations. What does it imply: that there are no foreigners in Assam! But BJP does not only talk, it also acts. When we say we are against illegal foreigners, we mean it. That is why our BJP karyakartas have filed over five lakh complaints. Otherwise, all would have become citizens (Indians). Today, the BJP has shown (that) Assamese people have not surrendered. BJP workers have
proved this.”
His assertions come a day after he said, “when the SIR (special intensive revision) comes to Assam, we will have to delete four to five lakh Miya votes. No matter how much Congress abuses me, my job is to make the Miyas suffer. If they don’t suffer, they will come to Duliajan. They have (already) come to Tinsukia”.
BJP leaders often target the Miya community (Bengali-speaking Muslims with roots in present-day Bangladesh) as infiltrators from Bangladesh.
However, the 1985 Assam Accord has fixed a cut-off date of March 24, 1971 for detection, deletion and deportation of illegal immigrants. The contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) extended the eligibility criteria for acquiring India citizenship by non-Muslims, who entered the country due to persecution from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, till December 2014.
Influx is a very emotive issue in the state, especially in Upper Assam.
The Election Commission ordered the SR in Assam, not the SIR currently under way in 12 states, because of issues related to the Supreme Court-monitored update of the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
The SR started in November and the draft roll was published on December 27 identifying around 10 lakh voters for deletion because of death or shifting. The claims and objections phase through Form 7 ended on January 22.
Without being coy, Sarma stepped up his attack on the Miya community, electorally influential in around 30 of the 126 Assembly constituencies, on Tuesday. Assam Assembly polls are likely to be held in March-April.
Sarma said: “Assam is a polarised society. The next 30 years, we have to practice the politics of polarisation if you want to live. If you want to surrender, then surrender. But as an Assamese, I don’t want to surrender. So, I will fight, I will polarise. But polarisation is not between Hindu and Muslim; polarisation is between Assamese and Bangladeshi. That is the difference. So we don’t fight Assamese Muslim, we only fight
Bangladeshi Muslim.”
In a night post on X, Sarma said: “For the next 30 years Assam has to practice politics of polarisation — and this polarisation is a fight to save our identity. It is between indigenous people of Assam and illegal Bangladeshis.”
Stressing on making the Miya population suffer, Sarma further said if the rickshaw fare is ₹5 , people should pay a rupee less to Miya rickshaw-pullers to “make them suffer so that they leave Assam”.
The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Wednesday staged a protest at the office of the Boko–Chaygaon sub-divisional commissioner in Kamrup district against the “unconstitutional acts” being carried out in the name of SR.
The protest was organised against the alleged actions of BJP workers “who reportedly entered the office at night and interfered with the (process of) deletion and inclusion of names in the voters’ list”
Congress MLA Rekibuddin Ahmed criticised the chief minister’s claim of having instructed BJP workers to delete the voting rights of four to five lakh Miyas wherever possible and to harass them whenever an opportunity arises.
The Congress will hold another protest in Guwahati on Thursday.